The Hot Yoga Doctor – Free Bikram and Hot Yoga Resources › Hot Yoga Doctor Forum › General Hot Yoga Discussion › Diet, Clothing, Hydration and Drinking › Numbness in thumbs
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I am not sure if this is the appropriate Forum for this post, but here goes anyway…
I am a hot yoga teacher and recently two of my newer students have come to me saying they’ve experienced numbness in their thumbs for DAYS after class. Both are young women, in shape, one is a professional dancer. I told them not to worry too much that was probably a lasting effect of some posture (such as salabasana where students often feel numbness or tingling in the fingers.) However, I cant help but wonder if something in their diet/hydration could be causing this result. In both cases the initial numbness dissapeared after a few days but returns sometimes.
My last thought/concern is that this could be something going on in the nervous system? While neither reported pain and both had full function of all their fingers, I wonder in something is happening inside to cause pressure on a particular nerve which may cause the numbness.
Thanks for any thoughts or insights you may have!
if you are tight in the chest and then that it releases up that will cause this (as per my physio therapist explaining that to me)
Well that is a coincidence that it happened to 2 students at the same time! :wow:
The good news Kathryn is that improving salt (in the form of unrefined salts and other electrolyte supplements) and water intake are low risk activities for them both to try.
It would be worth asking them what if anything relieves the sensation. Also you mention numbness as the descriptive word. It would be very important to find out if it’s numbness or tingling or …? Is it ONLY in the thumbs? It would be important to find out where else is affected.
It is a possibility that there is a nerve compression. One thing that causes numbness in the thumbs is carpal tunnel syndrome. There are exercises that one can do to help that situation.
Anyway these things are worth checking out via blood test and physical examinations.
Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂They may have a chronic inflammation which affects certain nerves. Increased exercise may initially aggravate the inflammation but then regular exercise would decrease the same inflammation.
However, with numbness, any additional exercise should be gentle.
And it never hurts to get checked out by a Doctor.
I am not sure if this is the appropriate Forum for this post, but here goes anyway…
I am a hot yoga teacher and recently two of my newer students have come to me saying they’ve experienced numbness in their thumbs for DAYS after class. Both are young women, in shape, one is a professional dancer. I told them not to worry too much that was probably a lasting effect of some posture (such as salabasana where students often feel numbness or tingling in the fingers.) However, I cant help but wonder if something in their diet/hydration could be causing this result. In both cases the initial numbness dissapeared after a few days but returns sometimes.
My last thought/concern is that this could be something going on in the nervous system? While neither reported pain and both had full function of all their fingers, I wonder in something is happening inside to cause pressure on a particular nerve which may cause the numbness.
Thanks for any thoughts or insights you may have!
I have recently started getting tingling and numbness after bow pose, and today it has stayed in my hand and thumb until the next day. I take electrolytes and drink lots of water and am on a very clean (no dairy no sugar no wheat no alcohol) diet. I am 8 days into a 30 day challenge, I dont know if that is part of it and i am exacerbating some swelling?
Hi Amanda
Are you doing 30 days straight? Or are you taking a day off per week?
It’s possible you have other information that could be relevant. You don’t mention if it’s one or both hands. Does it only happen with bow pose? If it does, what would happen (an experiment for you) if you didn’t do bow pose? Where does the tingling appear now, if it does at all?
Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂I do hot Bikram yoga in London, and 30 day challenges are fairly common. you can skip one day a week only if you do a double on another day. I get the numbness and tingling in my left thumb forefinger and middle finger. Today it has not gone away after class as it did the last two days. I am going to do a double tonight and take tomorrow off. Do you think I should skip bow pose? bow pose is definately what sets it off, the tingling goes into my and and wrist. I was also considering seeing a chirporactor because maybe some misalignment in my spine is pressing on a nerve. I have your book, and I am doing the bow propertly, although I cannot yet do standing bow properly as my leg seems to splay out a lot in it.
Hi Amanda
Yes, skip it. See where and if the tingling happens elsewhere in your practice. I would think you want to know if it happens elsewhere.
Please also, if your leg is splaying out, don’t go that far into the pose. Please when you attempt this pose again, only go as far with correct technique as you can with your hips in alignment and report back after a class or 2 of doing that. Of course that is in addition to doing a class without any Standing Bow at all! 😉
It seems too, that your body may need rest. If you’re having issues, then perhaps it’s a sign to let go of your challenge. Sorry! That’s just the way I feel about it. I don’t believe in challenges that insist on daily classes with doubles if you miss one so that you practise 30 on 30. IMHO any challenge should be 6 obligatory classes (no doubles) with any extra classes including ones on days off and any doubles not to count and also not to create an atmosphere of achievement and attachment to the goal of getting a challenge done rather than an outcome of yoga-related benefits. So, please examine why you’re doing this challenge particularly in light of your issues at the moment. If you’re comfortable continuing then go ahead! 😉
Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂 -
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